STERLING water district #4:
history repeating itself?
Designed hastily to take advantage of State funding made available in 2019 in response to Lake Ontario flooding, Sterling Water District #2 (WD #2) received initial Federal and State funding offers in late 2019, but still had not gone out for bid as of January 2024. Now history is repeating itself as closed-door discussion of "Water District #4" begins.
(Sterling Water District #2 (WD#2) presents an odd-looking two-winged splay on the map shown at left. The new public water district will run along the blue lines and will serve the shaded areas on the map shown at left.
The left wing lurches off toward Lake Ontario, eventually reaching undeveloped parcels along the fire lanes right along the shore. The district includes 138 land parcels, 31 percent of which (43) are vacant.
Why so many vacant properties? Why were vacant parcels, including those on the lakeshore, prioritized over occupied residential property in need of public water--or public facilities, such as the Sterling Nature Center, a County nature preserve, which will open a new $1 million facility in 2024, served only by wells and septic?
Designed in haste: With no public involvement in project design, and public information about project plans limited to this June 2020 slide show, the rationale behind the WD#2 project map is not apparent. The Town engineers, Capital Consultants Architecture and Engineering Inc. (C2AE) designed WD#2 hastily in 2019 to take advantage of NY State Lake Ontario Resiliency and Economic Development Initiative (REDI) funding. The project was designed "as a result of interest expressed by the property owners to the Town Board in a recent questionnaire"' and "to provide the best funding opportunity for the least cost," according to the 2019 Preliminary Engineering Report (PER) submitted by Capital Consultants Architecture and Engineering Inc. (C2AE).
Original project plans called for WD#2 to be supplied by a new, Town-owned well in the Village of Fair Haven's wellfield. By the end of 2019, $5.3 million in construction funding ($3.3 million grant and $2 million loan) was on offer from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), and NY State was offering $416,000 to fund 95 percent of the water tower,
Delays and drama: After two years of unexplained project delay pending required wellfield "drawdown" tests needed for the DEC permit to drill the new well (known as "Well #3), the public was questioning the wisdom of the Town and Village both owning wells in the Village-owned wellfield. By then, some Town Board members (Joan Kelley, Charlie Krul and Caren Thompson) were asking for analysis of other options for water supply.
By the summer of 2022 the three Board members were frustrated with lack of response from C2AE and voted to hire another engineering consultant, Doug Miller (Miller Assoc., Manlius, NY), on an $800 monthly retainer to advise Board members on options. Soon thereafter, in August 2022, C2AE submitted a resignation letter to the Town.
The project remained in limbo for the rest of the year, as presumably the Town attorney and C2AE's attorney negotiated contract close-out terms (these things are not known to the public). By January 2023, C2AE was back at work and had submitted a three-page project update including an alternatives analysis to the Town board.
The Revised Preliminary Engineering Report delivered in August 2023 calls for the Onondaga County Water Authority (OCWA) to supply water to WD#2, with Operations and Maintenance (O&M) of WD#2 provided by Cayuga County Water and Sewer Authority (CCWSA). The rest of 2023 was consumed in agency reviews, which are still pending (as described below).
Progress slow, spending fast: As of the end of 2023, C2AE had billed out 100 percent of the $451,715 design budget for WD#2; plus 46 percent of the $80,000 ($34,944) designated in their contract for Construction Administration; plus the $22,500 C2AE had earned earlier for preliminary project work. By comparing the first invoice of the year, February 2023 Invoice, with the final invoice December 2023 Invoice, it appears that C2AE billed the Town of Sterling at least $65,893 in 2023 under the WD#2 project. Other than the January three-page update and the August revision of the Preliminary Engineering Report discussed in the paragraphs above, the only other deliverables from C2AE in 2023 were a July Update and December Update.
Invoices Difficult to Decipher: Despite the fact that C2AE's 2020 contract with the town for WD#2 states on page 2 that "Invoices must include a breakdown of services provided" (boldface and italics in the contract), C2AE's invoices (see paragraph above) are for a flat sum. There is no indication of the labor category of the person rendering services, or what, exactly, the services entailed other than characterization as "Design" services, or, when that line item was spent, "Construction Administration."
Agencies waiting for response: The Town Board's "Water Committee" (the Town Supervisor, Board member Caren Thompson, and bookkeeper Pat Craine) meets with C2AE and, in theory, reports back to the Town Board. But the Water Committee reports at Town Board meetings are quite cryptic, and in 2023 usually were nothing more than saying they "hadn't heard from C2AE," or were "waiting for agency approval." This e-mail chain between the USDA representative overseeing the $5.3 million in Rural Development funding and the Town shows that the funding agency actually had to prod C2AE and the Town to move the paperwork.
What's next for WD#2? At this writing in January 2024, approval from the State DOH for the water tank is the only thing delaying WD#2 from going out to bid. But once the bids are in, it's likely that the project will need more funding. Bidding results will determine actual construction costs, but estimated construction cost increased from $5.3 million in 2019 to $6.4 million currently. Another public hearing and referendum are likely because without additional funding the estimated cost per Equivalent Dwelling Unit (EDU) have risen from an estimated $252/EDU in 2019 (which did not include each homeowner's water bill from the Village), to $1305/EDU now. It is unclear whether the homeowners will also be billed by OCWA for water--we have asked Town officials to clarify. The higher cost includes debt service, which would be lower if a larger grant were to be secured. But securing additional funding will cause more project delay.
Water District #4--History Repeats Itself: The orange lines on the map above depict Sterling Water District #4 (WD #4), as conceived by C2AE. The engineering firm is urging the Town to move forward quickly with planning the new water district because it wants to justify the sizing of the new water tower that was funded through the 2019 REDI grant.
The water tower is sized to provide hydraulic pressure throughout the Town, and was originally intended to hook into both WD#3 and WD#2, but under current project plans it will serve only the new WD#2. On November 30, 2023, the NY State Department of Health (DOH) officials administering the REDI grant notified C2AE that DOH wants the water tower downsized. C2AE now wants to justify the larger tower by hastening plans for an additional water district. In December 2023 C2AE requested (and received ) $3,000 from the Town to fund a new survey of residents of the proposed WD#4, and submitted a map of WD#2 with faint yellow highlights along certain roads as a C2AE's map of WD#4. We printed out C2AE's file, darkened the yellow with an orange highlighter, and scanned it to produce the map at the top of this web page.
The new WD#4 is depicted as spanning Sterling Valley Rd, Green Rd, Center Rd, Farden Rd, Jensvold Rd to the Sterling Nature Center, Old State Rd, and Juniper Hill Rd. The jog out to the end of Juniper Hill Rd along the shore of Sterling Creek near the lakeshore runs into what looks on the map like a planned development, but in fact seems to have a lot of vacant parcels and seasonal "camps."
When an entire Township needs public water service, and is well-positioned to attract funding for it, how should priorities be determined? The present process seems to be "back of the envelope"-style planning carried out behind closed doors by the Town engineering firm and only some members of the Town Board. The Town's "Water Committee" consists of the Town Supervisor, one Town Board member (Caren Thompson), and the Town bookkeeper (Pat Craine). At the December Town Board meeting, the other three Town Board members were taken by surprise when told of C2AE's request to fund questionnaires as a start on WD#4. Shouldn't the Town have a more strategic approach to developing future public water districts?
The left wing lurches off toward Lake Ontario, eventually reaching undeveloped parcels along the fire lanes right along the shore. The district includes 138 land parcels, 31 percent of which (43) are vacant.
Why so many vacant properties? Why were vacant parcels, including those on the lakeshore, prioritized over occupied residential property in need of public water--or public facilities, such as the Sterling Nature Center, a County nature preserve, which will open a new $1 million facility in 2024, served only by wells and septic?
Designed in haste: With no public involvement in project design, and public information about project plans limited to this June 2020 slide show, the rationale behind the WD#2 project map is not apparent. The Town engineers, Capital Consultants Architecture and Engineering Inc. (C2AE) designed WD#2 hastily in 2019 to take advantage of NY State Lake Ontario Resiliency and Economic Development Initiative (REDI) funding. The project was designed "as a result of interest expressed by the property owners to the Town Board in a recent questionnaire"' and "to provide the best funding opportunity for the least cost," according to the 2019 Preliminary Engineering Report (PER) submitted by Capital Consultants Architecture and Engineering Inc. (C2AE).
Original project plans called for WD#2 to be supplied by a new, Town-owned well in the Village of Fair Haven's wellfield. By the end of 2019, $5.3 million in construction funding ($3.3 million grant and $2 million loan) was on offer from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), and NY State was offering $416,000 to fund 95 percent of the water tower,
Delays and drama: After two years of unexplained project delay pending required wellfield "drawdown" tests needed for the DEC permit to drill the new well (known as "Well #3), the public was questioning the wisdom of the Town and Village both owning wells in the Village-owned wellfield. By then, some Town Board members (Joan Kelley, Charlie Krul and Caren Thompson) were asking for analysis of other options for water supply.
By the summer of 2022 the three Board members were frustrated with lack of response from C2AE and voted to hire another engineering consultant, Doug Miller (Miller Assoc., Manlius, NY), on an $800 monthly retainer to advise Board members on options. Soon thereafter, in August 2022, C2AE submitted a resignation letter to the Town.
The project remained in limbo for the rest of the year, as presumably the Town attorney and C2AE's attorney negotiated contract close-out terms (these things are not known to the public). By January 2023, C2AE was back at work and had submitted a three-page project update including an alternatives analysis to the Town board.
The Revised Preliminary Engineering Report delivered in August 2023 calls for the Onondaga County Water Authority (OCWA) to supply water to WD#2, with Operations and Maintenance (O&M) of WD#2 provided by Cayuga County Water and Sewer Authority (CCWSA). The rest of 2023 was consumed in agency reviews, which are still pending (as described below).
Progress slow, spending fast: As of the end of 2023, C2AE had billed out 100 percent of the $451,715 design budget for WD#2; plus 46 percent of the $80,000 ($34,944) designated in their contract for Construction Administration; plus the $22,500 C2AE had earned earlier for preliminary project work. By comparing the first invoice of the year, February 2023 Invoice, with the final invoice December 2023 Invoice, it appears that C2AE billed the Town of Sterling at least $65,893 in 2023 under the WD#2 project. Other than the January three-page update and the August revision of the Preliminary Engineering Report discussed in the paragraphs above, the only other deliverables from C2AE in 2023 were a July Update and December Update.
Invoices Difficult to Decipher: Despite the fact that C2AE's 2020 contract with the town for WD#2 states on page 2 that "Invoices must include a breakdown of services provided" (boldface and italics in the contract), C2AE's invoices (see paragraph above) are for a flat sum. There is no indication of the labor category of the person rendering services, or what, exactly, the services entailed other than characterization as "Design" services, or, when that line item was spent, "Construction Administration."
Agencies waiting for response: The Town Board's "Water Committee" (the Town Supervisor, Board member Caren Thompson, and bookkeeper Pat Craine) meets with C2AE and, in theory, reports back to the Town Board. But the Water Committee reports at Town Board meetings are quite cryptic, and in 2023 usually were nothing more than saying they "hadn't heard from C2AE," or were "waiting for agency approval." This e-mail chain between the USDA representative overseeing the $5.3 million in Rural Development funding and the Town shows that the funding agency actually had to prod C2AE and the Town to move the paperwork.
What's next for WD#2? At this writing in January 2024, approval from the State DOH for the water tank is the only thing delaying WD#2 from going out to bid. But once the bids are in, it's likely that the project will need more funding. Bidding results will determine actual construction costs, but estimated construction cost increased from $5.3 million in 2019 to $6.4 million currently. Another public hearing and referendum are likely because without additional funding the estimated cost per Equivalent Dwelling Unit (EDU) have risen from an estimated $252/EDU in 2019 (which did not include each homeowner's water bill from the Village), to $1305/EDU now. It is unclear whether the homeowners will also be billed by OCWA for water--we have asked Town officials to clarify. The higher cost includes debt service, which would be lower if a larger grant were to be secured. But securing additional funding will cause more project delay.
Water District #4--History Repeats Itself: The orange lines on the map above depict Sterling Water District #4 (WD #4), as conceived by C2AE. The engineering firm is urging the Town to move forward quickly with planning the new water district because it wants to justify the sizing of the new water tower that was funded through the 2019 REDI grant.
The water tower is sized to provide hydraulic pressure throughout the Town, and was originally intended to hook into both WD#3 and WD#2, but under current project plans it will serve only the new WD#2. On November 30, 2023, the NY State Department of Health (DOH) officials administering the REDI grant notified C2AE that DOH wants the water tower downsized. C2AE now wants to justify the larger tower by hastening plans for an additional water district. In December 2023 C2AE requested (and received ) $3,000 from the Town to fund a new survey of residents of the proposed WD#4, and submitted a map of WD#2 with faint yellow highlights along certain roads as a C2AE's map of WD#4. We printed out C2AE's file, darkened the yellow with an orange highlighter, and scanned it to produce the map at the top of this web page.
The new WD#4 is depicted as spanning Sterling Valley Rd, Green Rd, Center Rd, Farden Rd, Jensvold Rd to the Sterling Nature Center, Old State Rd, and Juniper Hill Rd. The jog out to the end of Juniper Hill Rd along the shore of Sterling Creek near the lakeshore runs into what looks on the map like a planned development, but in fact seems to have a lot of vacant parcels and seasonal "camps."
When an entire Township needs public water service, and is well-positioned to attract funding for it, how should priorities be determined? The present process seems to be "back of the envelope"-style planning carried out behind closed doors by the Town engineering firm and only some members of the Town Board. The Town's "Water Committee" consists of the Town Supervisor, one Town Board member (Caren Thompson), and the Town bookkeeper (Pat Craine). At the December Town Board meeting, the other three Town Board members were taken by surprise when told of C2AE's request to fund questionnaires as a start on WD#4. Shouldn't the Town have a more strategic approach to developing future public water districts?
Most of Town on well water: Properties outside the Village but within the Town of Sterling generally rely on private wells, unless they are within an operating public water district. As a low-income rural area, the Town of Sterling is in a good position to attract Federal and State funding for new public water systems, especially because many property owners do not have an adequate supply of potable water and have to purchase bulk water during dry seasons.
Sterling Water District #2 is shown in green on the Townwide map of Town Water Districts at left. Not shown on this map is the Village of Fair Haven's public water system.
The right wing of Water District #2 links the Township's two existing public water districts--Water District 1 (orange) at the north end, supplied by the Onondaga County Water Authority (OCWA) distribution lines on State Route 104, and Water District 3 (purple), supplied by the Village of Fair Haven wells just to the east of the Village.
Districts 1 and 3 are in service. District 2 is still on paper after 4 years.
Sterling Water District #2 is shown in green on the Townwide map of Town Water Districts at left. Not shown on this map is the Village of Fair Haven's public water system.
The right wing of Water District #2 links the Township's two existing public water districts--Water District 1 (orange) at the north end, supplied by the Onondaga County Water Authority (OCWA) distribution lines on State Route 104, and Water District 3 (purple), supplied by the Village of Fair Haven wells just to the east of the Village.
Districts 1 and 3 are in service. District 2 is still on paper after 4 years.
DOCUMENTS FOR STERLING WATER DISTRICT #2
2019
July 2019 Preliminary Engineering Report C2AE
July 2019 Application for Federal Assistance
August 2019 USDA Funding Eligibility Letter
2019
July 2019 Preliminary Engineering Report C2AE
July 2019 Application for Federal Assistance
August 2019 USDA Funding Eligibility Letter
Sept 2019 USDA Loan Conditions Pre-Approval Letter
Nov 2019 REDI Grant Letter
2020
Feb 2020 Final Map, Plan & Report C2AE
June 2020 Public Hearing Slide Show
Oct 6, 2020 Contract Between Town of Sterling and C2AE for WD#2
Oct 31,2020 Contract Between Town of Sterling and NY State Environmental Facilities Corp
2021
July 2021 Preliminary Engineering Report C2AE
Aug 2021 C2AE Contract Amendment-Additional $35K for Testing for Well #3 Test Plan
Nov 2021 NY State WIIA Grant Application
2022
June 2022 Preliminary Hydrogeological Report & Large-Diameter Well Development Plan Well #3 C2AE
Comments on Preliminary Hydrogeological Report & Large-Diameter Well Development Plan Well #3 NYRWA Steve Winkley
July 2022 Village of Fair Haven Resolutions Regarding Preliminary Hydrogeological Report & Large-Diameter Well Development Plan Well #3
2023
Jan 2023 Project Update from C2AE Including Options Analysis
Feb 2023 C2AE Invoice
May 2023 C2AE Invoice
July 2023 C2AE Project Update
Aug 2023 Preliminary Engineering Report Update C2AE
Sept 2023 C2AE Invoice
Oct 2023 E-Mail from C2AE to NY State DOH re Water Tank Sizing
Oct 2023 C2AE Invoice
Nov 2023 E-mails from USDA Rural Development
Nov 2023 C2AE Invoice
Dec 11, 2023 C2AE Project Update
Dec 2023 C2AE Invoice
DOCUMENTS FOR STERLING WATER DISTRICT #4
2023
Dec 2023 E-Mail from C2AE to Town Supervisor re Hydraulic Map of Water Tank Pressur#4e & Proposing Start of WD#4
C2AE Hydraulic Map
C2AE Map of Water District #4 (It's a map of WD #2 with really faint yellow highlights)
Sterling Water Stewards' Version of Map of Water District #4 (We blew up C2AE's map and ran an orange highlighter over the faint yellow lines)
Dec 29, 2023 Contract between Town of Sterling and C2AE for Conducting WD#4 Questionnaire Survey